If you like pretty Italian towns then you might find some enjoyment, but if you're looking for a compelling film I suggest you look elsewhere.

Yikes. Just yikes.

The events that took place in the Stuljema mines in 1907 are as inspiring as they are fascinating; they deserve a great film adaptation, The Riot is not this. 

This is ultimately a film about power and rebellion, and it is within the interplay of the two subjects that it shines.

It’s a light summer breeze of a film clearly aimed to bring joy to both parents and kids whilst still telling a compelling story, so some kind of deep underlying metaphor is unnecessary. Just go have fun watching a cartoon dog and a robot roller-skate to Earth, Wind & Fire! Your brain deserves a break.

Philip Gnadt and Mickey Yamine’s 2016 film Gaza Surf Club tells the story of several Palestinians and their relationship with the sea. Each of them finds a form of liberation while surfing. We see their struggle to form a thriving surf club whilst living under Israeli occupation.

Poignant and beautiful, The Boy and the Heron is both an interesting shift in theme and an excellent addition to Miyazaki’s extensive canon.

If this scene and the overall use of tension represent the start of a pattern for Jack Clark and Jim Weir, I look forward to catching their next film.